Should I get another 12in sub or get a single L7 Kicker?

Question

Right now I have a single 12" alpine sub Type R SWR, And a 350 watt amp. Would it sound better with 2 alpine, or 1 Kicker? And I am getting a new amp. Someone mentioned one thats 1500 watt, but, i dont want one that I have to buy a new alternator. I dont know much about amps, but, if its 1500watt, does that means thats what its capable of, or is that what it pulls/pushes at all times? Like, is it draining the battery the same and storing power, or, is it just taking as it needs it?

Well, I am sorry that you have trouble with kids. I personally am asleep at 3am. I work for a living, and I am sick of my current setup. I only wish to play loud on my way home from work for it lowers stress levels. At night, I dont even play my music loud, I have no reason to. So, please, if you done have a valid comment on my question, dont answer.

I know theres other things about amps, but, im mostly worried about drawing too much power...I really dont want to spend $300 on a new alternator.

The amp I was thinking of, well one of them, was the MTX 1501D.

This is what the RMS thing said...

RMS Power 12.5 VDC
2 Ohm Load 1000 w x 1
4 Ohm Load 500 w x 1

And my alternator I believe is 90...or 110. I cant remember which it is.

Well, the amp I have now pushes the sub good...or so I think. Though Ive only heard mine, ive never heard someone elses, so I have nothing to compare to. Now if I get a new amp...say, 1000watt, would that make my sub hit deeper...or what would change?

Answer 1

Wow.

I'm about to crash, but I'll try to help.

Your Type R can handle a LOT more power than 350 Watts, if the enclosure and amp sensitivity is done right.

Yea, there certainly is equipment capable of higher power, but you haven't even scratched the surface of what your current stuff can do. Get a better amp, a good installer/designer, and go.

If you're not wanting to do electrical system upgrades or big investments, baby, you gotta' work with what you have, and that brings in the fun.

Answer 2

Lecraper, I'm quite surprised that you were able to turn your computer on, since that requires more intelligence than your post indicates you have.

Now, back to the question. Whether or not you should replace your Type R with a 12" L7 depends on two things: if you have it in a sealed box now (they don't do well at all in sealed boxes), and if you are willing to spend the extra money on buying not only the L7, but the extra amplifier power an L7 requires.

One L7 will seriously outdo one Type R, since it can not only handle twice the power, it is almost 4 db more sensitive. A 3 db loss in sensitivity requires twice the power to play exactly as loud. That means that your sub will require 2½ times as much power to play exactly as loud as an L7. There's a caveat, though: L7's require ALOT of power, to perform their best.

So, assuming you've got a Type R that is less than 6 or 8 months old, have someone build (or build it yourself) a 1.75-2.0 ft.³ ported box for it. And I'd personally give it at least 5-600 watts, even in a ported box. As a matter of fact, I think you'd be extremely happy with this amp, pushing your Type R in a ported box: http://www.crutchfield.com/S-YHidbrB6APk/cgi-bin/ProdView.asp?g=120&I=037A1205D especially for the price. You more than likely wouldn't want two, with that amp + a large ported box. Just make sure to tell whoever builds the box that you want it tuned no higher than 30 Hz.

And lastly, amps only use what they require. You can make a 2,500 watt RMS amplifier use less than 1 amp (ampere) of "juice", if you turn your sound down low enough.

Answer 3

see i only blast my system at night when people act like that but anyway 2 alpines will be louder that one l7 and the way to tell what the amp will do all the time is the rms power not the max, that goes the same for the subs, I have a 2000 watt amp and i didnt get a new alternatorr but i need one. You can use it for a while but it will put a strain on your electrical system, it all depends on how many amps the amplifer draws and how many your stock alternator puts out, more inportantly how many it puts out at idle and low rpms because your going to be driving stop and go or crusing around town most of the time instead of the highway

Answer 4

I would go with the single L7, I think two 12s is excessive unless you want to go deaf at an early age. The key is to go to a reputable installer who will custom build the encloser to meet the speakers specs and tune the system to sound good. And dont buy an amp based on just the watts.. there are a couple other things that are just as important such as impedance matching. do some research and check out the garages other cars.

Answer 5

here's another idea. if u are so worried about draining your battery try installing a capacitor. that will help to keep your battery happy and stop your lights from diming. u should have about 350+ going both channels to those subs

Answer 6

kicker L7 will hit alot harder alpine